SYRIA CRISIS

Background

More than 3 million Syrians are registered as refugees by the UNHCR while the 4-year-old conflict drags on. According to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, the number of refugees will exceed 4 million in late 2014. Nearly half of all Syrian refugees are children and adolescents, or 1.2 million people.

The risk of trauma, violence and abuse, lack of access to education as well as recreational and cultural activities, suggest a "lost generation". For adults, the traditional channels of information and communication have been partially broken or distorted. While many large refugee camps were created in Jordan, Turkey and Iraq (managed by national authorities, UN agencies, and NGOs), a majority of Syrian refugees live outside the official camps, deprived of humanitarian services. Demographic, economic and social pressure weighs heavily on host populations and creates tensions, especially in Lebanon.

The program

The Ideas Box provides access to education and information, as well as psychosocial support and provides space for peaceful dialogue between refugees and host communities. As a result, the Ideas Box provides a comprehensive global response to the humanitarian crisis in the region.

Since February 2014, LWB is working with NGOs in Lebanon and Jordan to adapt the Ideas Box to the linguisitic and cultural context, but also to the geographical region. Mobile, fixed and urban devices are envisaged. The first Ideas Box will arrive in late 2014 in a camp near the Syrian border in Jordan, laying the groundwork for future, more extensive regional coverage in 2015.